The Ides of March

Movie Name: The Ides of March

Year of Release: 2011

Director: George Clooney

Stars: Ryan Gosling, George Clooney, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Paul Giamatti, Evan Rachel Wood, Marisa Tomei, Jeffrey Wright, Max Minghella, Jennifer Ehle, Gregory Itzin, Michael Mantell

Genre: Drama

Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 6

Synopsis:

After "Leatherheads", George Clooney's previous directorial effort, "The Ides of March" is a good return to form, in a film very much similar in tone to Tony Gilroy's "Michael Clayton", that Clooney starred.
"The Ides of March" follows the story of Stephen Myers, a young idealistic staffer who works for a governor currently trying to get the democratic vote to embark in the presidential race. Stephen works hard and is highly regarded. He gets lured into a situation by a rival campaign organizer which leaves him exposed and vulnerable to be laid off, however Stephen knows of a situation that topples all the scenarios that have unfolded.
George Clooney has had an interesting career as a director, starting with "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind", though his best film thus far has been "Good Night and Good Luck". With "The Ides of March", Clooney tries to show the corruption of values that touches everyone that gets involved in politics, even the most idealistic person. Stephen tries desperately to stay in his course, but rapidly realizes that in the game of politics, everyone is a pawn and all ideals and morals are easily brushed aside for more money or more power. The film tries to be very much in the vein of the political thrillers of the 70s, but the message becomes apparent all too quickly. The cast is uniformly great, with Ryan Gosling, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Paul Giamatti and Evan Rachel Wood all having good performances. A film worth checking out.